AUSTIN, Texas — A redraw of the state's congressional map could be headed to last-minute backdoor negotiations after the Texas House made a series of changes to the Senate's proposed boundaries.
In the early hours of Sunday morning, the congressional map passed in the Texas House in a 79 to 56 vote. The map had to go back to the House after changes made by the Senate on Friday.
That map was then changed, in order to not have two Black members of Congress from the Houston area pitted against each other. The House also reestablished the Hispanic-majority Central Texas district stretching from Austin to San Antonio the Senate had shrunk.
The Senate rejected those changes from the House, asking for a conference committee to square away the two chambers’ differences.
Districts are being redrawn after Texas gained two new congressional seats for the next decade, thanks to the growth the state has seen between the 2010 and 2020 census.
Critics say all proposed the maps diminish the votes of people of color and fail to recognize their large contribution to state growth.
PEOPLE ARE ALSO READING: